NATIONAL LEAGUE ROUNDUP : Reds Soar as Larkin Stays Hot

A shortstop must be a good defensive player. If he also happens to be a hitter, it is a tremendous plus.

Barry Larkin, who does an outstanding job on both offense and defense, has helped the Cincinnati Reds get off to the best start in the majors.

Larkin had three more hits Tuesday at Cincinnati, fielded flawlessly and the Reds, behind the strong pitching of Tom Browning, beat the San Diego Padres, 2-1, for their seventh victory in as many games.

For those who think the Reds made a monumental error when they traded ace reliever John Franco to the New York Mets for Randy Myers, it should be noted that Myers pitched the ninth, pickup his third save.

The first six victories were on the road, but it was the eighth straight home opener the Reds have won.

But the story is Larkin. At the time Larkin, who will be 26 April 28, suffered a torn ligament in his right elbow working out before the All-Star game, he was hitting .340. He didn’t return until September and by that time the Reds were out of the race in the West.

Larkin is batting .594.

“I can’t explain it,” Larkin said. “The balls just seem to be falling in here and there. I guess the key is for me to stay healthy.

“The hits are nice, but the most important thing is we’re winning. I can’t wait to get to the plate, especially with men in scoring position.”

Billy Hatcher also had three hits and drove in a run as the Reds scored twice in the second inning to beat Andy Benes.

Chicago 8, New York 6--Third baseman Howard Johnson’s throwing error with two outs in the 13th inning at New York let in the two runs for the Cubs.

During the game, which lasted more than 4 1/2 hours, there were 22 walks, six errors and eight stolen bases.

The Mets left the bases loaded in the third, ninth and 10th innings.

Ryne Sandberg, who tied the major league record with his 97th consecutive errorless game, hit the grounder that Johnson threw away. It scored Joe Girardi and Jerome Walton and was the fifth Mets’ error of the game.

Houston 5, Atlanta 3--Franklin Stubbs, who said he is happy to get away from the Dodgers, hit a two-run home run and two doubles at Houston to lead the Astros. It was the Braves’ fifth loss in a row.

Winner Mark Portugal (1-1) gave up two runs in the first, but retired 12 batters in a row before leaving in the sixth.

Stubbs’ first home run for the Astros came after a single by Craig Biggio in the second inning. Biggio had three hits and has nine hits in his last 11 at-bats.

Pittsburgh 7, St. Louis 2--The Cardinals’ Greg Mathews, trying to come back after being sidelined last season because of an elbow injury, walked six in 2 2/3 innings at Pittsburgh.

Winner Neal Heaton (2-0), who won his last five decisions in 1989, went 7 2/3 innings, giving up five hits. Heaton, who has given up only one earned run in 12 innings, didn’t win his second game last season until July 28.

Cold, gusty winds held the attendance to 3,981.

Montreal 2, Philadelphia 1--Rookie Delino DeShields hustled to first base to avoid a double play in the seventh inning at Montreal and drove in the winning run.

The left-handed-hitting DeShields was facing left-hander Don Carman with the score 1-1 and runners on first and third and one out. He pulled a bouncer to second baseman Tommy Herr and barely beat the throw on the double play attempt.